Archfiends
"Let the sky fall! Let the earth shatter! Let forth the true servants of the Ruinous Powers!" - Unknown Archfiend A fanatical warband of Chaos Space Marines, the Archfiends are zealous warriors devoted to the Ruinous Powers as a whole. Decended from the infamous Word Bearers traitor legion, the Archfiends are considered to be radically dangerous even by a Chaos Warband's standards, for each Archfiend secretly yearns to become touched by the Ruinous Powers in some way as to bring himself closer to immortal Daemonhood. History The Horus Heresy "To think that once I was little more than another grunt in Lorgar's army, destined to die on some distant battlefield. Now look upon me, and look upon all I have wrought." ''-'' Desolus the Unholy When the corrupted chaplain Erebus convinced Lorgar, Primarch of the Word Bearers, into worship of the Dark Gods, by that time Erebus had already had numerous like-minded followers within the Legion. One of which happened to be a young Space Marine by the name of Desolus. Desolus had long since been convinced of the true might of Chaos, but what Erberus didn't realize was the true depth of Desolus' fanaticism. When those among the Word Bearers stubbornly refused to convert, Desolus was among the first to put his former brothers to the sword. So great was his faith that during the Horus Heresy he rose to the rank of Dark Apostle. But, what no one suspected was that Desolus didn't just revere the Dark Gods, but rather wanted to join them. During the Purge of Nuceria, Desolus witnessed the Primarch Angron's acension into a Daemon Prince, and from that day forth, became obsessed with his own ascension to Daemonhood. Afterwards, Desolus began to spread his own influence within the Word Bearers, tempting them with promises of even greater power to be had if they pledged their allegiance to him. By the time Horus was struck down and the rest of the traitor legions forced to flee into the Eye of Terror, Desolus already had a sizable chunk of the Word Bearers under his control. Splitting off from the bulk of the legion, Desolus named his new warband the Archfiends, after an ancient Terran text he had read about a mythical lord of daemons that ruled over the realm of the dammed. The Search for Power "I SHALL BE REBORN!" - Desolus the Unholy, pre-ascension The Archfiends began there bloody crusade in an attempt to gather more knowledge and favor from the Ruinous Powers. At the time, Desolus was firmly convinced that the more he ravaged the Imperium, the closer he would come to becoming a Daemon Prince. At his command, the Archfiends destroyed cities, massacred entire planetary populations, defiled holy sites of the so called "God- Emperor", and yet nothing happened. The Archfiends then tried to gather knowledge of Chaos, raiding ancient libraries and delving deep into the Eye of Terror, in hopes of recovering some sort guideline that would lead to their leader's ascension. This brought the Archfiends into conflict with the forces of the Thousand Sons, who also sought out daemonic lore. It was during one of those battles that Desolus pried from the dead hands of a Thousand Son Sorcerer an unholy text that detailed the existence of some sort of powerful Chaos relic. Determined to find this relic, Desolus and his Archfiends attacked the Shrine World of Serhket, the resting place of the mysterious relic. Serhket had long since been a place of peace and worship amongst a war- torn galaxy, but the arrival of the Archfiends shattered their peace. The Archfiends tore the planet apart, searching for the relic's location. However, the forces of the Imperium were right on the Archfiends tail. An entire Crusade of Black Templars had been redirected to Serhket in order to wipe out the Archfiends once and for all. The Archfiends, by contrast, only numbered about 400 strong, their ranks bolstered by tens of thousands of cultists that they used as canon fodder. But Desolus would not be denied, and even as his forces were crushed by the Black Templars, Desolus and his most elite followers delved deep into the catacombs beneath Serhket, closing in on their prize. The Fall of Paradise "I was there when our lord found the relic, and I watched enviously as the Dark Gods freed him from his mortal shell, transforming him into their likeness. It was glorious to behold!" - Phobos Drelian, Dark Apostle As the world of Serhket burned, Desolus and his followers finally reached their destination. In the deepest bowels of Serhket's catacombs, their lay a massive chamber with daemonic runes and symbols carved into the walls and floor. In the center of the room was an enormous pedestal, on which lay the relic; a massive warp-forged scepter big enough for a giant to wield. As Desolus began the ritual to activate the ritual, the Black Templar's fought against the Archfiend's last line of defense. In desperation, one of the Archfiend's sorcerers sacrificed himself to bring forth a horde of shrieking daemons on to the battlefield, delaying the Black Templar's advance. Meanwhile, inside of the chamber, the ritual neared completion, the room began to fill with the energy of the warp. The Black Templar were pushed back by the onslaught of Daemons, Cultists, and Chaos Space Marines. All of creation suddenly seemed stood still as the Dark Gods, taking notice of the sheer chaos of the battle, gave Desolus what he most desired. Desolus swelled in size as the combined energy of the ritual and the sheer power of the Dark Gods filled him. Taking hold of the massive scepter in one massive hand, Desolus, now a Daemon Prince, burst out of the catacombs on to the battlefield, screaming his delight and slaughtering loyalists in droves. Desolus the Dark Apostle was dead, Desolus the Unholy had been born. Aftermath (MORE TO FOLLOW) Warband Culture The Archfiends worship Chaos Undivided, as sort of a pantheon of gods. But, rather than simply worship the Dark Gods, the Archfiends wish to become daemons themselves. For this reason, chaos mutations and corruption is considered a sign of favor, and many of the Archfiends would be content with simply becoming a Chaos Spawn. They are considered to be more than devout to the Ruinous Powers, even among other chaos factions. Most consider them to be arrogant, seeing as the Archfiends consider themselves to be "true" servants of Chaos, and are usually given a wide berth. The Archfiends aren't even on good terms with the Word Bearers as a whole, seeing as the Archfiends consider the Word Bearers to be "unworthy". Organization The organization of the Archfiends in quite simple: Chaos Space Marines act as commanders and elite infantry, Daemons and Possessed Marines as shock troops, and cultists as canon fodder. The entirity of the Archfiends are divided into smaller Hosts of about 100 chaos space marines, commanded by Dark Apostles. In addition, the Archfiends are ruled by a council of high- ranking Chaos Space Marines known as the Dark Tribune, that rule the Archfiends in Desolus' absence. The Archfiends also retain a group of Terminator- armored Chaos Space Marines known as the First Sons, which serve as Desolus' elite servants and bodyguard. Favored Tactics The Archfiends prefer to terrify and shock the enemy, boldly charging onto the battlefield, their armor decorated with unholy symbols and carrying banners strung with the remains of dead enemies. Often times the sheer horror they inspire is enough to send weak- willed foes running for the hills, which is an advantage the Archfiends always exploit. In battle they use mass charges of fanatical cultists to soften up the enemy before the Chaos Space Marines themselves move in for the kill. More often than not, the Archfiends will be accompanied by summoned daemons or blood-crazed possessed marines, using them as shock troops. Recruitment The Archfiends often recruit from the masses of cultists that they lead, selecting they strongest and most devout members to "ascend" to the rank of Space Marine. But, often times the Archfiends will take children from the worlds they devastate, forcing them through hypnotherapy and other brainwashing techniques in order to make them prime recruitment material. The Archfiends also recruit from the slave- stock of their adopted homeworld of Serhket, but very rarely. Those that are accepted as recruits are tested to the very edges of the strength and even their sanity, for the Archfiends will book no weaklings within their ranks. The potential recruits are forced to participate in several blasphemous rites in order to open their souls up to the influence of the Ruinous Powers, before being implanted with gene- seed. Often times the gene- seed belonged to Space Marines of a loyalist chapter, for the Archfiend's gene- stock has long since become corrupted and unusable. As a result, the Archfiends "acquire" gene- stock from other sources, and thus not many of the Archfiends bear the genes of the Primarch Lorgar. Homeworld Serhket is a daemon world of ruined cities, darkened skies, and shrines of the Dark Gods. Cathedrals once devoted to the Emperor are now places of unholy worship, and once beautiful cities have been transformed into daemonic forges where thousands of slaves toil to create new wargear for the Archfiends. Daemons of all kinds roam Serhket, kept from attacking the Chaos Space Marines through the sheer power of the Daemon Prince Desolus the Unholy. Desolus dwells within a massive structure known as the Dark Sanctuary, which serves as the Archfiends main base of operations. Captured tech- priests manufacture new weapons and armor for the Archfiends inside Serhket's hell- forges, as well as several priest of the Dark Mechanicus, who are allies of the Archfiends and run the forges. Each day, a new shipload of prisoners is transported onto Serhket to labor in the forges or serve as new sacrifices to the Dark Gods. Daemonic power is highly concentrated on Serhket, and many of those have labored on the Daemon World for to long have become chaos- tainted mutants. The entire planet is considered to be hell itself, and many would rather die at the hands of the Archfiends than be enslaved by them. Notable Members Desolus the Unholy A monster of a Daemon Prince, Desolus is by far one of the most devout followers of the Dark Gods. For every city he burns, for every world he devastates, Desolus seeks to gain more favor in the eyes of the Ruinous Powers. He resembles a massive warrior, three times the size of a Space Marine, clad in an archaic suit of armor inscibed with unholy runes and symbols. His form is wreathed in ever- burning warpflame, and he wields two weapons, one being his old corrupted Crozius, which now has become a daemon weapon of massive preportions, and the other being the Daemonic scepter that he discovered within the catacombs of Serhket. Phobos Drelian Leader of the Archfiends 1st Host and member of the Dark Tribune, the Dark Apostle serves as Desolus' most powerful followers. Phobos was originally a chaplain of the Word Bearers Leigion during the Great Crusade,but became one of Desolus' first servants after the events of the Horus Heresy. Phobos often leads the entirity of the Archfiends when Desolus is otherwise occupied. What Desolus doesn't know however, is that Phobos actually dreams of becoming a Daemon Prince himself, and secretly hunts for a way to ascend into Daemonhood as his master did. The Dark Apostle secretly despises Desolus, feeling jealous over how he was a member of the Word Bearers even longer than Desolus, and yet Desolus was the one to become a Daemon Prince. The Harvester This once venerable Contemptor- Pattern Dreadnought of an unknown Space Marine chapter was captured and reporposed in Serhket's hell- forges, transforming it into a daemon- possessed nightmare of a war machine. Not only is the dreadnought controlled by a host of daemonic spirits, but with the help of the Dark Mechanicus, the Archfiends have transformed armed the Harvester with an entire arsenal of unholy weaponry, including it's signature weapon, the Hell Gauntlet, a massive Powerfist that seethes with dark energy and can set enemies aflame in a single strike. The Harvester rarely speaks, but when it does it sounds as if several different voices where speaking at once Livery The Archfiend's colors are redish- maroon with a bone trim. They often decorate their armor with unholy runes and symbols of the Dark Gods, as well as the remains of dead enemies. The Archfiends often sport chaos mutations, and in many cases their armor has warped or fused with their flesh. The Archfiends symbol is a horned daemonic skull, and often times is pictured wreathed in fire. Relations Allies (feel free to add your own) Charous of Karva Charous of Karva was in the beginning a servant of the Kryschine's Sole Empire, and was the Prime Director who was leading a massive invasion force into the void of space. With a massive malfunction of their slipgates, Charous crossed the galaxy in an instant and appeared above the Daemon World of the Archfiends. Mystified and Intrigued by their Dark Rituals and the Eldritch Creatures they summonded, Charous descended alone onto the planet to feel the the sheer power of the planet. It was on the Archfiends' World that Charous released himself from the title of Prime Director and became the Arch Rebel descending in madness to servitude to Chaos. Enemies (feel free to add your own) Brothers of Solitude The space marines of Xerxes were constantly attacked by the World Bearers thus they sought to eradicate any thing connected to the World Bearers. On one such attack a Space Marine found on the dead body of a World Bearer a dark apostle he found a book about descendents of the World Bearers. Though there were many most had been destroyed or merged back in to the World Bearers, the chapter master Leo Nidus decided there and then that,the Archfiends should be put down like sick dogs. The first engagement between the Archfiends and the Brothers of Solitude was a long demanding campaign with 4 companies of the Brothers of Solitude including the first and the chapter master. By the end of the campaign which was when the Archfiends ran, the Brothers of Solitude had lost 30 brothers and 10 had succumbed to the war band, in addition to that the Brothers had to kill a few of their own Battle Brothers because they had fallen to their founding chapters curse of the black rage. This campaign was the worst in chapter history even though it was a victory. 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